Open Data supplied by Natural Environment Research Council (NERC)

RRS Discovery 264 75kHz VMADCP

Deployment and originator's processing

Two RDI Vessel-Mounted Acoustic Doppler Current Profilers (VM-ADCPs) were operated on Discovery 264; the 75kHz VM-ADCP and the 75kHz Phased Array instrument (Ocean Surveyor) that had been fitted immediately prior to FISHES (Discovery 253, May-June 2001). The 150 kHz ADCP is mounted in the hull 1.75 m to port of the keel, 33 m aft of the bow at the waterline and at an approximate depth of 5 m. The 75 kHz ADCP is mounted in a second well in the hull, but 4.15 m forward and 2.5 m to starboard of the 150 kHz well.

BODC processing

A total of 20 files were submitted to BODC. The data were supplied in P* binary format. The following variables were transferred to BODC QXF format (a BODC-defined subset of NetCDF and BODC's format for 2 dimensionsal datacycle storage) using transfer process tr389.

BODC Code

Description

Units

Originator's variable

ALATGP01

Latitude

degrees

lat

ALONGP01

Longitude

degrees

lon

AADYAA01

Date (time from 00:00 01/01/1760 to 00:00 UT on day)

days

time

AAFDZZ01

Time (time between 00:00 UT and timestamp)

days

time

APEWGP01

Eastward platform velocity

ve

cm/s

APNSGP01

Northward platform velocity

vn

cm/s

DBINAA01

Bin depth

metres

bindepth

DSRNGR01

Distance Run

distrun

km

ASAMAP01

Signal return amplitude from beam 1

decibels

intense1

ASAMAP02

Signal return amplitude from beam 2

decibels

intense2

ASAMAP03

Signal return amplitude from beam 3

decibels

intense3

ASAMAP04

Signal return amplitude from beam 4

decibels

intense4

LCEWAS01

Eastward current velocity (Eulerian)

cm/s

absve

LCNSAS01

Northward current velocity (Eulerian)

cm/s

absvn

LERRAS01

Current velocity error

cm/s

velerr

LREWAS01

Relative eastward current velocity

cm/s

evelcal

LRNSAS01

Relative northward current velocity

cm/s

nvelcal

LRZAAS01

Upward current velocity

cm/s

velvert

PCGDAP01

Percentage good return signal

%

good

Screening and Data quality

The data have been visually screened for obvious problems using the BODC EDSERPLO software. There are no problems to report apart from a few spikes which have been flagged.

Marine Productivity programme (MarProd)

The Marine Productivity programme (MarProd) was a Thematic Programme of the Natural Environment Research Council. It was funded for a period of five years starting in 2000. Its main goal was "to develop coupled modelling and observation systems for the pelagic ecosystem, with emphasis on physical factors affecting zooplankton dynamics" with the following specific objectives:

To identify the dominant spatial and temporal scales of physical parameters and zooplankton population dynamics, by observation, modelling and retrospective analysis

To parameterise the critical processes governing zooplankton dynamics by observations and experiments

To construct and validate spatially explicit models of zooplankton and their food and predators, capable of resolving short term changes in population structure

To provide data for model validation by developing and applying new interdisciplinary techniques to a wide spectrum of biological and physical parameters

To develop a database and information system for historic and new data and models.

The programme was composed of two phases: Phase 1 projects (2000-2002) focused on the use of historical datasets and existing biological models, complemented by laboratory experiments and remote-sensing analyses to gain a better understanding of the dynamics of zooplankton populations in shelf seas. The main, field-based Phase 2 of the programme (2001-2005) focused on the open ocean. The fieldwork phase took place between November 2001 and December 2002 and consisted of four surveys in the northern North Atlantic in early winter 2001 and 2002, and in spring and summer 2002.

MarProd was a major UK contribution to the international Global Ocean Ecosystem Dynamics project (GLOBEC).